Sweetwater Reporter (Sweetwater, Tex.), Vol. 112, No. 074, Ed. 1 Wednesday, February 10, 2010 Page: 4 of 12
twelve pages : ill.View a full description of this newspaper.
Extracted Text
The following text was automatically extracted from the image on this page using optical character recognition software:
Viewpoints
Page 4 ■ Wednesday, February 10, 2010
Sweetwater Reporter
DEDICATED TO PROUDLY DELIVERING LOCAL NEWS SINCE 1881
1—x Sweetwater 1
Reporter
P.O. Box 750/112 W. Third
Sweetwater, Texas 79556
325/236-6677
Fax: 325/235-4967
Website:
www.sweetwaterreporter.com
E-mail addresses:
publisher@sweetwaterreporter.com
business@sweetwaterreporter.com
advertising@sweetwaterreporter.com
circulation@swee1waterreporter.com
editor@sweetwaterreporter.com
composing@sweetwaterreporter.com
TA
MEMBER
2010
TEXAS PRESS
ASSOCIATION
Sharon E. Rrfedander
publisSier/ad director
Danica Hickson
business mgr.
Michelle Ashford
circulation mgr.
Tadana Rodriguez
managing editor
Pablo Rodriguez
composing mgr.
Rleu Reyes
production mgr.
EDITORIAL POLICY
The editorial section of the newspaper is a forum for
expression of a variety of viewpoints. All articles except
those labeled "Editorials" reflect the opinions of the writ-
ers and not those of the Sweetwater Reporter.
Hamilton
MOT MUM
Hollywood reporter
God bless America, and how's everybody?
The Hollywood Reporter noted Tuesday the ten big-
gest moneymaking movies of all time are action mov-
ies. Americans love their heroes to be wild risk-takers
with no regard for their personal safety. In his next
movie James Bond will drive a Toyota.
The White House kept up its attack on Toyota
Wednesday, saying that in addi-
tion to Toyota's sticking gas pedals
fthe Prius's brakes don't work. Don't
■ worry. Anybody in California will tell
"™l™ you that the Prius doesn't go fast
enough to even need brakes.
The Sports Illustrated swimsuit
issue hits the newsstands Friday,
showcasing the most beautiful women
in the world in bikinis. The models
Hr||MQ are filmed in exotic locations. It's a
HiyUd great break for them after covering
the world for Fox News all year.
Tiger Woods was reported Friday
returning to Accenture's match play
tournament in Arizona. The ratings should be great.
Over the course of a week the field of sixty-four is
reduced to one and if his wife doesn't win this year she
gets everything.
A nineteen-year-old New Zealand girl auctioned
her virginity online for thirty-two thousand dollars on
Tuesday. She won't reveal the name of the winning
bidder. The only clue is that Roman Polanski has just
offered to be extradited to New Zealand.
Scott Brown was sworn in as U.S. senator from
Massachusetts Thursday. Democrats weren't sore
sports at all. He moved temporarily into Teddy
Kennedy's old Senate office, but that's just until they
get a desk that'll fit inside a Porta-Potty out back.
The Tea Party convention got started in Nashville
Friday. The organization is named after the Boston
Tea Party, which was the first sign of revolt by
American colonists against the British Crown over
high taxes. Now taxes are so high that the first thing
the convention did was apologize to King George and
apply for reinstatement.
House Democrats voted by a narrow margin to
raise the nation's debt ceiling by two trillion dollars
Thursday. The total debt is now fourteen trillion. We
may have cut back the space program but we haven't
given up on our quest to reach infinity.
White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel apolo-
gized to the Special Olympics Wednesday for calling
liberal Democrats retarded. It's not fair. Liberals
believe everybody deserves a medal and the Special
Olympics requires actual achievement to get one.
President Obama offered to forgive college loans
for students Thursday if they agree to work for the
U.S. government for ten years. The idea has a familiar
ring to it. Leave it to America's first black president to
bring back indentured servitude.
Al-Qaeda was reported Thursday to be stockpil-
ing Botox as a WMD for a terrorist attack. People in
Hollywood are excited. If we can get the Pentagon
to invade Los Angeles for our Botox stockpiles, the
reconstruction cash could put us back on our feet.
The White House said Tuesday the Underwear
Bomber is finally talking to interrogators. They
should have kept it secret. Revealing his confession
to the world lets the enemy know he's talking, but the
Republicans would have found out eventually.
Broadway star Rip Torn was cited Friday after he
broke into a Connecticut bank while drunk, then went
to sleep on the floor thinking he was home. Nothing
was broken or missing. Spencer Tracy told him when
he was young the secret to success in the acting busi-
ness is: Learn your lines, hit your marks and don't fall
over the furniture.
Argus Hamilton is the host comedian at The
Comedy Store in Hollywood. He can be reached for
speaking engagements by e-mail at argus@argush-
amilton.com.
Letter to the Editor
Dear Editor,
I was stationed with Troy Bradbury of Sweetwater,
TX in Germany 1968. I am trying to locate him for
a reunion. If anybody has any i nformation on his
whereabouts it woula be greatly appreciated. My
Butch Roberts email- rsromaha@gmaiI.
name is
com
Butch Roberts
Omaha, Ne
GUEST COLUMN
February: Time to think about your heart
of
February is a time of
decorating with hearts!
While we see store win-
dows decorated with
hearts and cupids, few of
us are reminded
of our own hearts.
However, it has
been decided that
Februaryis National
Heart Month to
remind us of that
ever important
muscle! The fol-
lowing article was
written by Courtney
Shoessow, former
AgriLife Extension
Specialist, and it
covers all the things
we should be think-
ing about during
this heart-filled time
year.
Throughoutthe month of
February, we are swarmed
with decorations and
candy that remind us of
Cupid, love, and February
14th. While the hearts
that cover Valentine's Day
merchandise are meant
to represent love, they
should also serve as a sim-
ple reminder for us to take
care of our hearts. The
next time you see one of
these hearts, think about
your own heart, and ask
yourself if you are living a
heart-healthy lifestyle.
While the rates of death
due to cardiovascular dis-
ease are on the decline,
it is still the number one
cause of death in the
United States.
Many risk factors of car-
diovascular disease can be
controlled by a lhing a
healthy lifestyle and mak-
ing wise choices every day.
A pro-active approach to
heart health also involves
visiting your doctor to find
out about your cholesterol
and blood pressure.
While some risk factors
of heart disease are out of
our control, such as age
and genetics, there are
many things we can con-
trol through our everyday
choices. Everyday choices
include what you eat and
how much you exercise. A
heart-healthy diet is nutri-
ent rich and includes lots
YOUR HEALTH
of fresh fruits and veg-
etables, whole grains, and
fat-free or low fat dairy
products. It limits foods
that are high in calories
and low in nutri-
ents, and also
limits saturated
fat, trans fat,
cholesterol, and
sodium.
It is recom-
mended that
healthy people
age 18-65 exer-
cise at least 30
minutes a day,
five days a week.
The exercise you
do can be what-
ever you enjoy
the most - swim-
jogging, walking,
or playing a sport
LyniiAnn
Duniven
ming,
biking,
- the important thing is
that you are engaging in
physical activity.
Finally, as part of a
heart-healthy lifestyle, you
should make the pledge to
quit smoking or vow to
never start. While many
people associate smoking
with lung cancer, which is
true, it is also a major risk
factor for heart disease.
One added bonus to liv-
ing a heart-healthy life-
style is that it is also a
cancer-preventative life-
style. Not smoking, exer-
cising regularly, and eat-
ing healthfully will help
reduce your risks of devel-
oping certain types of
cancers along with greatly
benefitting your heart
health.
Seeing one of cupid's
hearts should also remind
you to visit your doctor
and find out how your
own heart may be doing.
You should have your
blood pressure measured
to know if you have pre-
hypertension or hyperten-
sion, which is high blood
pressure. It is estimated
that one in three U.S.
adults has high blood pres-
sure. Having hyperten-
sion or pre-hypertension
can increase your risk of
stroke, heart attack, heart
failure, and kidney fail-
ure.
While at the doctor's
office, you should also
have a blood test to deter-
mine your cholesterol lev-
els. Having high choles-
terol levels may also put
you at increased risk for
heart disease. Knowing
you have high cholesterol
or blood pressure can help
you and your doctor make
decisions about changes
you can make to help
lower or decrease these
numbers and lower other
risk factors.
Texas AgriLife Extension
Service and Texas Cancer
Council remind you to live
a heart-healthy lifestyle.
LynnAnn Duniven is the
County Extension Agent
for Family and Consumer
Sciences in Nolan County.
Comments about this col-
umn may be e-mailed to
editor @sweetwaterr e-
porter.com.
m
a
Q*ZfrTtr
®>2<s0 epeejcQiMu
Valentine's day chocolate good for your heart
This Valentine's Day,
you may find yourself on
the receiving end of a gift
of chocolate. As
long as it's choco-
late of the dark
variety, feel free to
indulge — it's good
for your heart.
In recent years,
dark chocolate has
achieved the status
of a health food.
Research suggests
that in small doses,
regular consump-
tion of the tasty
treat can help lower
blood pressure,
fight inflammation and
hardening of the arteries,
and reduce the risk for
cardiovascular disease.
Antioxidant substances
called flavonoids are likely
responsible for the favor-
able effects. Flavonoids are
found in all plants, includ-
ing fruits, vegetables, nuts
and whole grains. They're
also abundant in the cocoa
bean, from which choco-
late is made. Like tea and
wine, dark chocolate is a
plant extract in which the
beneficial substances are
condensed and concen-
trated.
Because it takes so many
cocoa beans to make a sin-
gle serving, dark chocolate
is especially rich in anti-
oxidant flavonoids. Ounce
for ounce, it typically con-
tains more antioxidants
than red wine, green tea
and berries. Due to differ-
ences in preparation and
processing, milk chocolate
contains fewer antioxidant
substances. White choco-
late has very little in com-
mon with dark chocolate:
It's made with cocoa but
ter and lots of sugar, and
has no flavonoids at all.
Dark chocolate isn't as
sweet as white chocolate
or milk chocolate, and its
flavor is often described
as bittersweet. Flavonoids
are actually bitter tasting
compounds, so the more
bitter the taste, the sweet-
er the health benefits.
In the body, flavonoids
Dr. Rallie
McAllister
irotect cells and tissues
rom damage inflicted
by disease-causing free
radicals. This is
believed to be the
primary mecha-
nism of action
behind dark choc-
olate's ability to
improve cardio-
vascular health.
In a study at the
University of
L'Aquila in Italy,
scientists mea-
sured the effects
of dark chocolate
consumption on
adults with high
pressure. They
among indi-
blood
found that
viduals who ate 3.5 ounces
daily, blood pressure fell
10 percent to 15 percent,
an effect similar to that
of many blood pressure-
lowering drugs. In addi-
tion, the researchers found
that the volunteers experi-
enced beneficial increas-
es in insulin sensitiv-
ity, resulting in improved
blood sugar regulation.
Individuals who con-
sumed white chocolate, on
the other hand, did not
exhibit similar changes in
blood pressure or insulin
sensitivity.
Scientists at Athens
Medical School in Greece
found that after eating dark
chocolate, the function
of cells lining blood ves-
sel walls was significant-
ly improved. The results
of their research suggest
that eating dark chocolate
helps make blood vessels
more flexible, protecting
them from hardening of
the arteries and reducing
the risk of cardiovascular
disease.
Researchers at Johns
Hopkins University found
that chemicals in cocoa
beans have biochemical
effects similar to aspirin
in reducing blood platelet
clumping. Blood platelets
are responsible for form-
ing clots in the arteries
that can lead to heart
attacks and strokes.
There's no doubt that
dark chocolate is good
for your heart, but it may
also benefit your mind.
If you feel happier and
more relaxed after eat-
ing an ounce or two, it's
not just your imagina-
tion. Chocolate contains
phenylethylamine (PEA),
a compound found in
high concentrations in
the brains of calm, happy
people. Although other
foods, including sauer-
kraut, are richer sources of
PEA, chocolate is unques-
tionably a more roman-
tic package for the mood-
enhancing compound.
Lastyear, Swissresearch-
ers conducted a clinical
trial to evaluate the emo-
tional effects of consuming
dark chocolate. The results
of their study, published in
the Journal of Proteome
Research, showed that
eating an ounce and a half
of dark chocolate daily
for two weeks effectively
reduced levels of stress
hormones in people who
described themselves as
"highly stressed."
If you're watching your
weight, you may want to
consume dark chocolate
with a little restraint. The
good news is that when
eaten in moderation, the
tasty treat isn't any more
fattening than many other
popular snack foods. A
2-ounce serving of dark
chocolate has around
220 calories and about 15
grams of fat, compared to
the 300 calories and 20
grams of fat in a 2-ounce
serving of potato chips.
Even better, treating your-
self to a little dark choco-
late may help dampen
your desire for other high-
calorie snacks.
Researchers at the
University of Copenhagen
found that volunteers
experienced fewer crav-
ings for salty, sweet and
fatty foods for several
hours after eating a serv-
ing of dark chocolate.
Chocolate has always
been a symbol of love and
indulgence. If you find
yourself on the receiving
end of a gift of dark choco-
late this Valentine's Day,
consider yourself loved,
and indulge.
Rallie McAllister, M.D.
is a family physician,
speaker, and co-founder of
www.MommyMDGuides.
com, a website featur-
ing child-raising tips
from trusted doctors who
are also moms. To find
out more about Rallie
McAllister, M.D., and
read features by other
Creators Syndicate writ-
ers and cartoonists, visit
the Creators Syndicate
Web page at www.cre-
ators.com.
The SWEETWATER REPORTER
(USPS 5300-860) is published daily
except Saturdays and holidays by HPC
of Texas Inc. (Periodical Postage Paid)
112 W. 3rd, Sweetwater, Texas 79556
Postmaster: Send address changes to:
SWEETWATER REPORTER
P.O. BOX 750.
SWEETWATER, TX 79556
City Delivery $9.00 per month, $90.00
per year, 6-months $50.00, 3-months
$26.00. By mail In-County Rates
3-months $36.00, 6-months $65.00,
12-months $115.00. Out-Of-County
Rates 3-months $50.00, 6-months
$88.00, 12-months $140.00.
Correction Policy
Editorial:
As a matter of policy, the
Sweetwater Reporter will
publish corrections of errors
in fact that have been print-
ed in the newspaper.
The corrections will be
made as soon as possible
after the error has been
brought to the attention of
the newspaper's editor at
236-6677.
Advertising:
Publisher reserves the right
to reject, edit or cancel any
advertising at any time with-
out liability. Publisher's liabil-
ity for error is limited to the
amount paid for advertising.
DEDICATED TO PROUDLY DELIVERING LOCAL NEWS SINCE 1881
V
__ Sweetwater
Reporter
Upcoming Pages
Here’s what’s next.
Search Inside
This issue can be searched. Note: Results may vary based on the legibility of text within the document.
Tools / Downloads
Get a copy of this page or view the extracted text.
Citing and Sharing
Basic information for referencing this web page. We also provide extended guidance on usage rights, references, copying or embedding.
Reference the current page of this Newspaper.
Sweetwater Reporter (Sweetwater, Tex.), Vol. 112, No. 074, Ed. 1 Wednesday, February 10, 2010, newspaper, February 10, 2010; Sweetwater, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth229088/m1/4/: accessed May 7, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Sweetwater/Nolan County City-County Library.